by Eric Lendrum
On Monday, in a rare unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled against the Biden Administration in a case regarding the legality of warrantless searches and seizures of firearms, The Epoch Times reports.
The case, Caniglia v. Strom, began oral arguments roughly two months ago. The case stems from an incident in Cranston, Rhode Island, back in August of 2015, where a man named Edward Caniglia had an argument with his wife of 22 years. Eventually, Caniglia withdrew an unloaded gun and suggested that his wife shoot him and “get me out of my misery.” His wife then called the police asking them to carry out a welfare check, where Caniglia was taken to the hospital.
Despite the police’s assurance that his guns would not be confiscated, they ultimately did seize his firearms without a warrant after he had been hospitalized, and refused to return them to him after he was discharged. Caniglia subsequently sued, claiming that the exception for community caretaking, which is what the police claimed to have used in this case, should not apply inside his home.
The Biden Administration’s Department of Justice, represented by DOJ lawyer Morgan Ratner, argued in favor of the city’s actions, claiming that “the label you give it is not nearly as important as principle. And the key principle is if someone is at risk of serious harm and it’s reasonable for officials to intervene now, that is enough.”
The Court ultimately ruled in Caniglia’s favor, determining that the seizure of his weapons without a warrant violated his Fourth Amendment rights. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the relatively short opinion, at just four pages long.
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Eric Lendrum reports for American Greatness.
